Page 23 of The Warrior's Oath
Nyota tried to read his face for any sign of humor.
There was none. He was as serious as a heart attack.
“Okay, but if it gets much hotter out, I’ll take the risk of being spotted,” she said, sliding it over her shoulders.
“Very well. All I ask is that you be careful.”
Nyota had a few snarky comments on the tip of her tongue but the earnest way he was looking out for her wellbeing made her think twice about using them.
“I will,” she finally said. “Thank you for your concern, Korvin.”
He nodded once, then returned to his work. In just a few minutes he completed his last pass of the downed ship. Satisfied he had gathered as much of value as they could reasonably carry, he slung the pack over his shoulder and turned to Nyota.
“We go this way. Judging by the angle of the impact, gravity would have naturally pulled the other sections in that direction.”
“What about the bodies?” she asked.
“We leave them for the animals.”
“That’s not right. They deserve a decent burial.”
“What they deserve and what is prudent are not the same thing. If we disturb them after a conflict such as this, signs will remain, and any who pass by will know of our presence. As it stands, it looks as though a raiding party came upon them and a fight ensued, nothing more. This, in turn, covers our tracks.”
She couldn’t argue with his logic, but it didn’t sit well, regardless.
“Yeah, but it feels wrong.”
“I understand your empathy toward the dead, truly I do. But these victims were not your friends. Not your family. And their deaths now contribute to the circle of life. Animals will live because of them. Plants will gain nourishment. It is not ideal, I know, but I hope this perspective helps soften the blow. Now, we need to leave. There are still several hours before nightfall, and we should be far from this place by that time. Come.”
He started walking, his pace even slower than before, giving his human companion an easier time of it. Nyota fell in behind him quietly, surprised by his words and mulling over this new, compassionate facet she had just discovered in his personality.
Sure, he was still leaving the bodies to the wild, but there was real consideration behind his actions, and a respect for the natural order that she found downright refreshing—fromanyone, let alone an alien soldier.
Mom always said you could find bright spots in the damndest of places,she mused as she followed her alien protector.I doubt she would have expected this.
She followed close as Korvin carefully selected their path away from the area. He was choosing a more circuitous, rocky trail. One that would not leave footprints to give away their presence.
They walked in silence for a solid hour, not once stopping, but also not pressing the pace to one that would unduly strain the human woman’s lesser body. She was starting to feel the wear and tear of the exercise and it showed. Korvin, however, looked as fresh as he had that morning. Whether it was his runes helping him or just his natural fitness she didn’t know, but Nyota was grateful he was taking her physical condition into consideration.
A break in the forest came upon them abruptly. Trees towered around them, the burgundy and deep green foliage utterly alien but nevertheless beautiful in the fading light, but a wide gap now spanned between them.
A road.
Or something like a road, though there were no tire tracks that she could see. Korvin crouched down and cocked his head to the side, listening. Nyota moved next to him and did the same.
“Transport is moving closer,” he said after a moment. “Several of them.”
“I don’t hear anything.”
He tapped the rune behind his ear. It was like her translation rune, but it was more ornate, the additional markings apparently giving him enhanced hearing. She marveled at the way this organic pigment could alter a person’s natural abilities like that and couldn’t help but wonder what the living ink could do to a human body rather than an alien one.
“There aren’t any tire tracks,” she noted, looking at the untouched foliage.
“Tire?”
“You know, to roll on. On the ground.”
Korvin looked confused. “Our transports operate with a basic hover field and impulse drive. They do not touch the ground.”
